Homemade Liquid Laundry Detergent

Homemade Liquid Laundry Detergent

*Recipe copied from the September 2009 issue of Rural Arkansas published by Electric Cooperatives of Arkansas

You will need:

A very large pot

A whisk or mixer

A paper mask

A cheese grater

One bar of Fels-Naptha soap-grated

1 ½ cups 20 Mule Team Borax

11/2 cups Arm and Hammer washing soda

Put on the mask and grate the bar soap into a bowl.

Pour grated soap into the pot and add 12 cups of water.

Cook and stir until boiling and soap completely dissolves.

Add Borax and washing soda and stir until completely dissolved, remove from heat.

Put 8 cups of hot water into a 5 gallon bucket, add soap mixture and stir well.

Add 2 gallons and 12 cups of water and stir well again.

Let the mixture set for 24 hours, it will kind of gel – like egg drop soup.

Use a whisk or mixer (a paint mixer and drill works well) to make it smooth again.

Makes about 4 gallon of liquid laundry soap.

Use the soap full strength as a stain remover.

If the load is extra dirty, let soak for ½ hour before completing the wash cycle.

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My father introduced me to this recipe.  I thought he was a little bit loony for doing this, but I tried this detergent and love it.  It doesn't make me itch and it doesn't make my clothes smell like tropical passion tuti-fruity sunshine. (smile) I bottle it up in used detergent bottles and use the lid to measure out for the loads.  If the load is large or heavily soiled, I'll put another half lid full in for good measure.  It does a fine job, and it's a lot cheaper than the store-bought stuff.

Dad and I do a few things to make the process easier, though.  If you have a food processor with a cheese grater wheel, you can make short work of grating the Fels-Naptha.  Just drop it in like you would a block of cheese and let 'er rip.  You won't need the mask if you go this route.  Also, you can use a paint-stirring attachment on the end of a power drill to mix it.  This makes a really smooth concoction. Don't fill your bottles to the top. The finished product will separate in time, so leave a little room in the bottle so you can shake the mixture before using it.

You might have to hunt for the ingredients.  Fels-Naptha soap is sold at Ace Hardware.  The 20 Mule Team Borax can be found at Wal-mart and Kroger.  So far I've only found the Arm-and-Hammer Washing Soda at Kroger.  I should note that the washing soda is NOT the same thing as baking soda.  Look for it in the laundry aisle. Of course you can always buy the ingredients online. Shipping costs could cancel out the savings, though, so do your homework and crunch the numbers before going that route.  

By the way, don't eat it.  :)